Peter the Great: His Life and World
| Author | Robert K. Massie |
|---|---|
| Language | American English |
| Subject | History of Russia, Biography of Peter the First |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf, New-York |
Publication date | 1980 (book dedicated to Marie Kimball Todd and James Madison Todd, In memory of Robert Kinloch Massie) |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 860 |
| ISBN | 0-345-29806-3 |
Peter the Great: His Life and World is a 1980 biographical work written by Robert K. Massie. The book won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography.[1]
Summary
This work in the epic style that chronicles the life of Peter the Great reveals the will of the young Tsar to create an efficient navy as well as his ambition to modernize Russia, notably by bringing the nobility into line of Modernity, from a military point of view, from morals and thought too, and building ex nihilo on the Russian Baltic shores a European capital Saint-Petersburg. This book is divided into 61 chapters divided into five major parts : "Old Muscovy", "The Great Embassy", "The Great Northern War", "On the European Stage", and "The New Russia".[2][3]
First mixed reception of the award-winning book by some scholarly historians, with broad critics
Reviewing the book in the American Historical Review, James Cracraft criticized it for overlooking the main scholarly studies in English, while relying heavily on an 1884 biography by the American historian and diplomat, Eugene Schuyler.[4] Cracraft, while stating that he cannot recommend the book to scholars, concluded:
"A colorful, dramatic, at times gripping story is told here in fine detail and in effortless prose. The book is flawlessly printed...and generously, if not always accurately, illustrated. It far surpasses, in volume rather than in acumen or grace of style, the other popular biographies of the first Russian Emperor – by Alex de Jonge and by M. S. Anderson....It will serve to advance the cause of serious history more likely than not, among the general public".[5]
TV Adaptation
It was adapted in a 1986 TV miniseries.
Translation
The book Peter the Great was translated into French by Denise Meunier and published by Fayard in 1985[6].
References
- ^ "The Pulitzer Prizes: 1981 Winners and Finalists". Columbia University. The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
- ^ Massie, Robert K. (October 1981). Peter the Great: His Life and World. New York City: Ballantine Books. pp. vii–ix. ISBN 0-345-29806-3.
- ^ Massie, Robert K. (22 February 2012). Peter the Great: His Life and World (Random House Trade Paperback ed.). New York City: Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-81723-5.
- ^ Schuyler, Eugene (1884), Peter the Great, Emperor of Russia, A Study of Historical Biography, vol. I, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, retrieved 2025-06-14; Schuyler, Eugene (1884), Peter the Great, Emperor of Russia, A Study of Historical Biography, vol. II, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, retrieved 2025-06-14
- ^ Cracraft, James "Peter the Great (Book Review)" American Historical Review (Oct 1981), Vol. 86 Issue 4, p886–887.
- ^ Robert K. Massie, Pierre le Grand. Sa vie, son univers, Librairie Arthème Fayard, 1985, 863 pages for the scholarly paperback edition with Notes, Bibliography and Index. ISBN : 978-2213014371. Only 831 pages for the popular edition with an abridged appendix, limited to thanks (Remerciements)